


Smidge says Trans Rights

by Poppypng



Category: Trolls (2016)
Genre: F/M, Found Family, Highschool AU, Human AU, Platonic Branch and Smidge, Trans branch, branch is pining, but this aint abt them, if there's no found family then whats the god damn point, implied broppy, implied/referenced dysphoria, pride prompt, short and sweet, trans smidge
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-11
Updated: 2020-06-11
Packaged: 2021-03-04 02:41:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,765
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24666301
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Poppypng/pseuds/Poppypng
Summary: Did everyone else already know? Did Poppy know? Does she see him differently than he thought she did? Does she see him as a man at all? If Smidge knows who’s to say she didn’t tell anyone?Aka Smidge saves Branch from a sticky situation and they indulge in a heart-to-heart
Comments: 4
Kudos: 46





	Smidge says Trans Rights

**Author's Note:**

> This is for the discord's Pride month prompt! The prompt was LGBT trolls headcanons and this is a work set in the same universe as my trolls human au! In my au, Branch and Smidge are both trans but handle it very differently. Smidge is out and proud and will gladly punch any bigots while Branch is more paranoid about what people think of him.

The sun assaulted the teens trying to cool down by the pool. The summer was almost miserably hot. Almost. Poppy and her friends were satisfied with a pool and some ice cream. If they were together it was manageable. And they were constantly attacked with sunscreen by the newest member of their friend group, a grouchy boy that cared a bit too much about rules and safety. However, they were grateful for the lack of sunburn. 

The boy in question, however, seemed to be obsessively cautious when it came to himself. He refused to take off his shirt or get in the pool even though it was well over 90 degrees out. Not even Poppy, who seemed to have him wrapped around her finger, could convince him to get in the pool. She had tried to force him, but he was deceptively strong, even if he was a bit short compared to the others. He still towered over Smidge, the smallest member of their group. Smidge was also deceptively strong and Branch couldn’t hold a candle her.

For some reason, though, Smidge refused to participate in their attempts to get Branch in the water. She even snipped at them a few times to leave him alone. Branch sighed in relief when they finally listened to her and left him alone for a bit. He sat peacefully in the shade and watched them from a distance until Smidge came and sat next to him. 

“I thought you were all uptight about safety. You’re gonna get heat stroke if you keep this up.”

Branch grumbled something unintelligible in response.

“Why are you doing this?” Smidge asked “You obviously don’t wanna be here.”

“I can’t stay away from her.” He mumbled, flushing. Smidge followed his eyes to Poppy. She was undeniably cute. And very, very persuasive. 

“Can you at least go put your legs in the water? Just to cool down a little?” 

He mulled over her request. The water did sound very nice… and it wasn’t safe being out in the heat like this anyway… He sighed and heaved himself up, heading to dangle his legs in the cool water.

It was nice for the first few moments… but Poppy quickly shot her attention towards him. 

“You’re coming in??” She asked, beaming. 

“No. No more than this. And DON’T splash me.” 

She grinned mischievously, obviously considering it. She ultimately decided against it, happy he was at least making progress. 

“Why don’t you just come in?” She asked, lightly tugging at his arm. 

“I don’t want to.” He said, pulling back. 

“Pleeeeaaasseee?” She asked, leaning closer to him. “Or I could give you a wet hug! That’ll cool you off.”

He considered it. Any hug from Poppy didn’t sound bad. He rolled his shoulders and took a deep breath. 

“No, I’m fine like I am.” He decided.

He saw Poppy frown and silently cursed himself for disappointing her. For not telling the truth about why he didn’t want to swim. Maybe now was a good time. She was his best friend… He didn’t have anything to worry about. He searched her eyes for reassurance and spoke barely above a whisper.

“Poppy, I need to tell you some-”

Before he could finish his sentence, Cooper ran past, accidentally bumping into Branch. In turn, Branch lost his balance. With Poppy still innocently holding his arm and the fact that he was leaning forward to talk to her, he plunged into the deep end of the pool. He was completely submerged before he even registered what had happened. The only thing he could think of was how nice it felt. He felt Poppy tug him back up.

He gasped for a breath as he broke the surface of the water. 

“Branch!! Can you swim?” She asked, nervously pulling at his arm to keep him above water. “I realize I never asked! Is that why you won’t come in?”

He politely took his arm back. “I can swim.” He felt an uncomfortable tightness in his chest. He didn’t know what to do. He was soaked and had no excuse to leave without seeming suspicious… He needed an out and fast. His eyes nervously darted around, trying to think of any believable reason to leave so suddenly. 

“Branch!” Smidge yelled. “I thought you were gonna help me move some furniture after this. Why are you swimming?” 

Branch looked up at an angry Smidge, wrapped in a towel at the edge of the pool. He made no such promise and after looking at her in confusion for a moment, he realized she was saving him. 

“I fell in.” He explained. “I can still come help. I just need a towel.” Smidge offered him a hand to get him out of the pool. She threw a towel at him and informed everyone they were leaving. 

“Where are we going?” Branch whispered as he followed her off the property. 

“My house.” She said.

“Why?” 

“Would you rather be back there?” She looked at him and his expression told her all she needed to know. “Just wait until we get there.” 

They walked in silence. Branch’s mind raced. Would he have to explain everything to Smidge? Would she even ask? Would she tell Poppy? No… she wouldn’t. If Branch could confide in anyone about this, it’s Smidge. 

When they arrived at her empty house, she led him upstairs to her room. He stood awkwardly as she dug through her closet. She pulled out an oversized t-shirt and gym shorts. 

“These are Biggie’s clothes.” She explained. “He left them here last time we tried to work out together. We ended up just watching TV.” 

He took them, not knowing quite what to do.

“The bathroom is there.” She pointed at a door. “If you need help getting out of your wet binder, let me know. I won’t be weird about it.” 

It took Branch a moment to process this. “You… you know?” 

Smidge gave him a look. “Binder first. Then we can talk.” 

Branch ducked into the bathroom, almost ashamed. He should have known people would catch on. He can’t swim in his binder but he can’t be seen without it. He struggled out of the tight, wet fabric. He’d rather die than have Smidge help him out of it. He felt disappointing. He felt deformed. 

Did everyone else already know? Did Poppy know? Does she see him differently than he thought she did? Does she see him as a man at all? If Smidge knows who’s to say she didn’t tell anyone?

Branch shook his head. Smidge wouldn’t. Smidge knows the struggles he’s gone through. Though vastly different experiences, the two core concepts are the same. She would never do that to him. She helped him escape from the others. She didn’t say anything to them. If they knew, she would have said something. 

He put on the shirt that was way too big for him. Too big to easily see his chest. He looked dumb in the oversized shorts and shirt-dress, but it was better than suffocating. He emerged from the bathroom and Smidge offered to take his clothes.

“I’ll throw these in the dryer. We can put your binder in the backyard in the sun and it should dry right up with the heat.” 

He handed over his clothes without making eye contact.

“You can sit on the bed if you want. The remote is on top of the TV.” She said as she left the room. 

Branch sat on the bed. He was in no mood for TV. He felt so torn. He wanted desperately to talk to Smidge, to share experiences, get some advice and validation. But at the same time, he was terrified and dreaded talking about it. He had never had to come out to anyone. He was on his own from an early age and, while he was sure some caretakers knew, he’d never had to actually talk about it. He remembered just a bit earlier in the day, sitting on the poolside, leaning in to talk to Poppy, softening his voice as he prepared to tell her. Was he really going to go through with it if Cooper hadn’t interrupted? He can’t imagine he was. 

He jolted as the door handle turned and Smidge returned. She sat next to him and sighed. They sat in silence for a few moments. Every second was agonizing to Branch. He didn’t want to start the conversation but also was so anxious for it to start. 

“How long have you known?” He asked her.

“I had a feeling in… Freshman year.” She paused as she tried to remember the details. “You went to the bathroom to change for gym class. So did I. But I figured you just might be avoiding bullies.”

“So when did you know for sure?”

“Not until this summer. I was like 85% sure but I still had some doubts. I thought the occasional binder strap could just be an undershirt. You refusing to go shirtless in 90 degree heat could be an irrational fear of sunburn. Not wanting to go in the pool could be cause you couldn’t swim. But the more signs I saw the harder they were to wave off. So when I saw you panic in the pool I thought I’d rather be safe than sorry and get you out of there.” 

He stared at the ground. “Does anyone else know?”

“Not that I know of.”

“Are you gonna tell Poppy?” Branch knew it was unfair of him to even ask this, but he was so paranoid already. And Smidge was much closer to Poppy than to him. 

“It’s not my place to.” Smidge said. “I wouldn’t tell her even if you asked me to. That’s something you should do.” 

He let out a breath he didn’t know he was holding. “Thank you, Smidge.”

“Of course. And when you do decide to tell her, I’m here to support you.” 

“Can I… hug you?” 

Smidge blinked in surprise. Branch would barely accept hugs from Poppy and even then Smidge had never seen him ask for one. Her surprise melted into adoration and she held her arms open. Branch all but collapsed into them. For the first time ever, he felt seen and accepted in this way. He genuinely felt like he was hugging a family member- a sister. 

Hours later of a mixture of small talk and deep personal stories, Branch walked home in his now dry clothes. He walked home with a new feeling of validity and confidence. And a connection to his new sister.

**Author's Note:**

> The au is still a wip but follow my tumblr Poppy-png for updates! Comments and Kudos are always appreciated <3


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